Incredible journey from Leinster gamble to best coach in the world
TO fully appreciate how far Joe Schmidt has travelled in Irish rugby, you need to go back to the autumn of 2010 when the New Zealander had just taken over as Leinster coach.
Schmidt was an unknown quantity, he had been a low-profile assistant with Vern Cotter’s excellent Clermont side, and his appointment was seen as a gamble by Leinster – particularly as Michael Cheika had left some sizeable shoes to fill.
First impressions were confusing. We expect Kiwi rugby men to be stereotypically big, dour and straight-talking (think Steve Hansen), Schmidt was blond, slight, fresh-faced and almost diffident in his smiling delivery.
It did not create the impression of a dominant figure ready to take on Cheika’s mantle and, when Leinster lost three of their first four matches (including a woeful defeat in Treviso), the heat came on.
There were agenda-driven claims, led by prominent pundit George Hook, that Schmidt – having never had a major head coach’s role before – was out of his depth and that Leinster would be better off pulling the plug quickly before the situation worsened.
After a limp loss in Edinburgh, the criticism got intense enough for Leinster to call a special press conference where Ireland captain Brian O’Driscoll pleaded for patience while stressing the new coach had the full backing of his players – in soccer land, it would be described as ‘the dreaded vote of confidence’.
But O’Driscoll and his teammates knew they had the right man and the memory of a shell-shocked Schmidt (who admitted later he had been completely blindsided by the media pressure), at that press conference came to mind yesterday when watching the beaming Ireland coach congratulate his players.
It has been an incredible journey for Schmidt from there to here, a trek that has brought two European Cups, three Six Nations titles, a first win in South Africa, a first win over the All Blacks, a record run of 12 wins, a history-high ranking of second in the world and now... a Grand Slam achieved with a level of unfussy surety Irish sport is unaccustomed to.
When Stephen Jones’ penalty fell short and the final whistle sounded in Cardiff in 2009, Ireland’s players (led by Paul O’Connell’s wild and wobbly baby-giraffe sprint up the pitch) went crazy – unrestrained joy was the order of the day. Yesterday was different. The Irish players greeted their confirmation as only the third side from this country to win the Grand Slam with calm satisfaction.
No mad dashes or pile-ons, when they had every right to go into full Mardi Gras mode, Schmidt’s players exhibited the type of control that has characterised their compelling progress through this championship.
And you wondered whether, even then, when their work was done and glory secured, whether their restraint was on the back of Jonny May’s late try, or the earlier brace by Elliot Daly, all in the wide corridors that have been consistently highlighted as an area of defensive weakness during this championship.
For that is how players’ minds work under Schmidt. Always looking for improvement, always aiming for the next target, the next box to tick. In the image of their master. Irish sport has certainly never had a coach or manager like him. The attention to detail is at a level never previously seen and it has created systems and processes capable of adapting to any circumstances.
We have seen this all through the championship. From the incredible end-game execution in Paris, to the way Ireland dealt with persistent injury problems and tailored their game to different opponents, seeking out the points of weakness and exploiting them ruthlessly.
Never more so than yesterday in Twickenham. England were shaky going into it but still dangerous and Schmidt teed up his team for their most explosive display of the tournament. Eddie Jones got schooled yesterday.
Schmidt identified the potential vulnerability in Jones picking Anthony Watson over Mike Brown at No15 and thus we got a Johnny Sexton garryowen that would have done Ollie Campbell proud at Twickenham in 1982. Watson buckled under superb pressure from Kearney, Ringrose pounced and Ireland had the first try and the momentum they never yielded. That was old-school.
Then there was the brilliance of the move leading to CJ Stander’s try. Tadhg Furlong lulled the English into thinking he was the dummy runner for a standard Sexton wraparound before slipping a delicious reverse pass to Bundee Aki, who set up Stander for his score.
It was an exceptional tactical coup, brilliantly executed and the perfect example of the level of forensic planning Schmidt arms his teams with.
That planning extends to the squad development that has seen Ireland claim this slice of history using eight players who had never experienced the Six Nations before. Under Schmidt, youth is not seen as barrier and, armed with the tools their coach gives them, players barely out of their teens are capable of going to a place like Twickenham and producing with no trace of nerves on show.
How far Schmidt can take this team, we will leave for another day. For now, it is about appreciating a phenomenal coach and Ireland’s phenomenal journey on his watch.
Ireland may not yet be the best team in the world, yesterday proved they have the best coach.
Irish sport has certainly never had a manager or a coach like him